Matty Erolon, Adamson University’s reliable marksman from the Soaring Falcons’ grassroots program, was expected to be the spark in a crucial clash against National University.
Instead, he struggled to find his rhythm on offense, and his miscues in the final moments proved costly as Adamson fell 65-66 to the Final Four-bound Bulldogs.
Heading into the matchup with NU, Erolon was Adamson’s third-leading scorer, averaging 8.7 points per game.
But the Bulldogs’ suffocating defense kept him off the board while also forcing him into four of the Falcons’ 21 turnovers in 20 minutes and 39 seconds of play.
“The plan was to have [Erolon] on the line because he’s one of our key guys. That’s why we made the substitution of [Ray Allen] Torres, Erolon, [Matty] Montebon, [Manu] Anabo, and [Cedrick] Manzano sa dulo. Because we knew that they’re just gonna follow,” coach Nash Racela told reporters Saturday evening at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Erolon’s crucial errors came in the dying seconds: missed free throws that could have stretched Adamson’s lead to four points with 15.9 seconds remaining. Then came a foul on Bulldogs forward Mark Parks’ go-ahead layup.
The plays ultimately sealed the narrow defeat and dropped Adamson temporarily to solo fifth with a 5-6 record.
Despite the setback, Racela remains confident that Erolon will use the experience as a lesson to reclaim his clutch form — the same composure that helped Adamson prevail in tight games against University of Santo Tomas and University of the Philippines.
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“That’s something that he needs to learn, hindi ba? Overcoming yung mga ganyang situation. He’ll learn eventually,” Racela said.
“Ang lagi naman na preaching diyan is really a next play mentality, whether it’s good or bad na nangyari sa’yo. You just have to focus on the next one.”
Beyond Erolon, Racela emphasized that his players must take control of their destiny, reminding them that officiating or external pressure cannot dictate the outcome.
“We just told our players that as coaches we will put them in a position to win games but it’s up to them to really take it.
“Referees won’t help them. Diba? Sabi ko nga. Pero ang daming non-calls nung huli dahil puro pressure, but you just have to play above it. We had a chance. We got our chance,” he said.
Looking ahead, Adamson faces a challenging three-game stretch to close the eliminations. They will be going up against defending champion UP, perennial contender De La Salle University, and a scrappy Ateneo de Manila University squad.
“UP is a different team now from the first round. Grabe yung improvement nila. But just like how we do things, we just have to prepare for them. We know that in every game, we have a chance,” Racela concluded.
